Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jul 9, 2025
Long-term Behavioral and Reproductive Consequences of Embryonic Exposure to Low-dose Toxicants
Published on: March 6, 2018
Ex vivo exposure to polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) selectively affects the immune response in autistic children
Marjannie Eloi Akintunde1,2, Yan-Ping Lin3,4,2, Paula Krakowiak4,5
1School of Medicine, Division of Rheumatology, Allergy and Clinical Immunology, University of California, Davis, United States.
Insights
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) exposure impacts immune cell function differently in children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) compared to typically developing children. PBDEs correlate with suppressed immune responses in autistic children, suggesting a link to immune anomalies.
Area of Science:
- Environmental Health
- Immunology
- Neurodevelopmental Disorders
Background:
- Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) often exhibit immune dysregulation, with the postnatal environment playing a potential role.
- Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are environmental contaminants linked to various health issues, including immune system effects.
- Investigating the association between PBDE exposure and immune function in ASD is crucial for understanding environmental influences on neurodevelopment.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine the association between plasma levels of PBDEs and immune cell function in children with and without ASD.
- To determine if PBDE exposure differentially impacts cytokine and chemokine production in peripheral blood mononuclear cells (PBMCs) between autistic and typically developing (TD) children.
- To explore the specific effects of BDE-49 exposure on immune cell function in both groups.
Main Methods:
- Plasma samples from 38 autistic children and 60 TD children were analyzed for 14 PBDE congeners.
- Cytokine and chemokine production was measured in PBMC supernatants with and without ex vivo BDE-49 exposure.
- Correlations between total plasma PBDE concentration (∑PBDE14), individual congener levels, and T cell function were assessed.
Main Results:
- Total PBDE levels (∑PBDE14) did not differ between groups, but correlated with reduced immune function in autistic children.
- Specific PBDE congeners, notably BDE-49, were associated with reduced IL-2 and IFN-γ production in autistic children.
- Ex vivo BDE-49 exposure stimulated elevated IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1β, MIP-1α, and MCP-1 production in PBMCs from autistic children, unlike TD controls.
Conclusions:
- Despite similar PBDE plasma levels, PBDE congeners differentially impact PBMC function in autistic children compared to TD children.
- Increased PBDE body burden correlates with suppressed immune response in autistic children, but not TD controls.
- BDE-49 exposure differentially affects immune cell function, suggesting a link between PBDE susceptibility and immune anomalies in autism spectrum disorder.
Abstract:
Children on the autism spectrum have been shown to have immune dysregulation that often correlates with behavioral deficits. The role of the post-natal environment in this dysregulation is an area of active investigation. We examined the association between plasma levels of polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) and immune cell function in age-matched autistic children and non-autistic controls. Plasma from children on the autism spectrum (n = 38) and typically developing controls (TD; n = 60) were analyzed for 14 major PBDE congeners. Cytokine/chemokine production was measured in peripheral blood mononuclear cell (PBMC) supernatants with and without ex vivo BDE-49 exposure. Total plasma concentration (∑PBDE14) and individual congener levels were also correlated with T cell function. ∑PBDE14 did not differ between diagnostic groups but correlated with reduced immune function in children on the autism spectrum. In autistic children, IL-2 and IFN-γ production was reduced in association with several individual BDE congeners, especially BDE-49 (p = 0.001). Furthermore, when PBMCs were exposed ex vivo to BDE-49, cells from autistic children produced elevated levels of IL-6, TNF-α, IL-1β, MIP-1α and MCP-1 (p < 0.05). Therefore, despite similar plasma levels of PBDE, these data suggest that PBMC function was differentially impacted in the context of several PBDE congeners in autistic children relative to TD children where increased body burden of PBDE significantly correlated with a suppressed immune response in autistic children but not TD controls. Further, acute ex vivo exposure of PBMCs to BDE-49 stimulates an elevated cytokine response in AU cases versus a depressed response in TD controls. These data suggest that exposure to the toxicant BDE-49 differentially impacts immune cell function in autistic children relative to TD children providing evidence for an underlying association between susceptibility to PBDE exposure and immune anomalies in children on the autism spectrum.
More Related Videos
09:09Generating a Reproducible Model of Mid-Gestational Maternal Immune Activation using PolyI:C to Study Susceptibility and Resilience in Offspring
Published on: August 17, 2022
08:28Assessment of the Effects of Endocrine Disrupting Compounds on the Development of Vertebrate Neural Network Function Using Multi-electrode Arrays
Published on: April 26, 2018
